Faults:

Minor rust repair on the A pillars, spark plug on the number 7 cylinder needed a spacer due to oil burning on that specific cylinder.

General Comments:

GM hit a home run with the body style of this and the other divisions' versions of the G platform. The 305 was too slow, should have used the 350, never understood why. A lot of people swapped them out.

I've only seen 2 others that were optioned like mine with column shift, bench seat and T-top glass panels.

If you are looking to purchase one of these, do it now. Prices are climbing and the days of finding a good one for 5 grand are far gone.

Faults:

Alternator.

Water pump.

Cassette player.

Brake lines rusted through.

Wheel bearings.

Valve guides.

Body rusted.

Turn signal switch assembly behind the steering wheel.

Tilt steering mechanism.

Dash cracked from age.

General Comments:

I purchased this car for 500.00 in 2003 with 181K on the odometer. It was already suffering from severe rust through in the left rear trunk/wheel well area and surface rust here and there. Ugly was her name to be sure!!

It was roomy, and fast enough to be fun from a standing start, but not excessively so, and replacement parts and tires were CHEAP!!

The best part of owning this fine but dated machine was that I would not hesitate to take it through any amount of snow on the road. Throw in a few bags of sand in the trunk and this trusty machine with its narrow 14 inch tires would plow its way through anything the winter snowstorms in Ohio would send its way. I would travel 30 miles one way and not think twice about it. It was heavy and pushed down through the snow covered roads to allow the winter tires to bite. Gas mileage wasn't the best, but for the ability to go anywhere in any weather, a welcome trade off.

The saddest part was that it rusted so badly it was beyond my ability to repair without major funds being committed. I sold it to a guy who really wanted a Monte to modify for 400.00 in 2012. I miss my Monte, but replaced it with a 2014 Camaro V6 this year. My opinion, almost an updated Monte Carlo personal luxury coupe with a different model name. It was a dependable workhorse worth every bit of money I spent on it. Shame they are no longer made!!

Faults:

Exhaust gaskets began failing and leaking at about 130k.

Stabilizer link rubbers deteriorated, needed replacing.

Fuel pump died at about 125k.

Radio would randomly jump through stations every now and then, and needed a hit or two on the side to reset.

Rear window leaked. Tried resealing it... twice. Just learned to live with it.

General Comments:

I had this Carlo through my Junior-Senior years of high school, and I could not have thought of a better deal. Mine was white with the maroon striping and decals, with matching maroon interior.

It was quick, smooth, sharp, and fun. Good commuting vehicle that ripped up the streets on Friday and Saturday nights. Floated on the highway and had a great ride. My favorite was hitting the backroads and hearing the BFG-Radials squeal under hard cornering, which it did well by the way. It would hit 130 mph without breaking a sweat, and could hold its own on a "show" lot with the big boys (i.e. Chevelles, etc.).

Anyone considering this vehicle, I think should consider even harder. It was fantastically reliable (aside from the fuel pump, which was no biggie as it was a cheap part and an easy fix) as well as it being a great car to take out for cruising nights. Cheap to maintain. It has its quirks, but you learn to live with them because the good outweighs the bad. The only reason I sold mine was because I needed a truck (and not a muscle coupe). I love the G-body cars of the 80s like the Monte, Regal/GN, and Cutlass because they were the last of true Detroit muscle. Bottom line, great car.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, even with my high-school-senior-lead-foot in it all the time, I still averaged 15 mpg. If I was trying for economy, I could get nearly 25 on the highway.